Fears for youth charity as it looks for new home

Chief Executive of SNaP Youth, Mandy Mangold, who said ideally her charity would want to buy a new premises

Fears have been raised over the future of a Derbyshire youth charity which is set to leave its base at the end of this year.

The SNaP Youth project in South Normanton regularly helps up to 300 teenagers by providing mentoring, training and sports activities.

It is currently based in a building owned by the South Normanton Community Church, but it will no longer be able to operate there from December as the church has a new programme of events for a wider age range.

A church official said they wanted to reach "the whole community".

Chief Executive of SNaP Youth, Mandy Mangold, said: “We’re really concerned about the future, it’s quite worrying.

"We don’t know where we’re going to be after Christmas or what we are going to be able to deliver.”

SNaP, which stands for South Normanton and Pinxton, wants to buy a building so it will have a permanent base and is appealing for sponsorship from local businesses.

"If we could own our own building, gosh it would be so exciting," added Mrs Mangold.

"We could open up in the day for young people as well as in the evening."

Ella, 13, who uses the group, said: "I would be really sad (if the group was to stop).

"When I am not at youth club I am not really doing anything. It helps me bond with people."

Ella who is 13 uses the SNaP Youth sessions that are under threat

Zoe Presland, who is the pastor of South Normanton Community Church, wants a wider age range of people to use its building on High Street

The charity, which has operated for 20 years, meets in the evenings in a building in High Street, which belongs to the South Normanton Community Church.

As a replacement for the charity's activities there will be parenting classes for young mothers, toddler group sessions and cookery lessons.

Zoe Presland, who is a pastor of the church, said it wanted to appeal to a wider age range by making this change.

She added: “They (the youth group) certainly have reached out to the community, that is very true but we want to do this from a church, Christian perspective, to reach out to the entire community with the love of the church."

The building that the SNaP Youth group uses. It has until the end of December to find an alternative premises